Lovely Letters Monogram

Lovely Letters stamp set creates gorgeous monograms, doesn’t it? To create these inverse color images:
1. Stamp first in Versamark and emboss with white embossing powder.

2. Then sponge on Rose Red craft ink.
3. Lightly rub excess ink off the white image.

You can sponge the color lightly or add more and more color for fuller coverage.

Ingredients: Stamps: SU Lovely Letters
Paper: DSP by My Mind’s Eye and Soft Suede DSP by SU
Ink: Versamark and SU White embossing powder
Ribbon: from AC Moore

TIPsy Tuesday - Masking

In the last two posts, I’ve shared cards I made from watercolored images. Before watercoloring, I stamped the flowers using a masking technique. Masking allows you to create stamped images that look layered. One flower is underneath another flower in a natural position. You can use masking with any two stamped images that need that layered affect to look more realistic.

Here is a great video from Carissa Wiley on YouTube to show you masking techniques: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YgVyHS0rCVo

And here are the brief instructions for a quick reference:

To create your mask:
1. Stamp the image that needs to be "on top" on scrap paper or a Post-it note.
2. Cut out very close to the edges.

To use your mask:
1. Stamp the image that will appear “on top” first. (I know this seems backwards!)
2. Cover the image you just stamped with its mask. If you stamped on a post-it you may have a little built in adhesive to help the mask stick. You can also use some removable adhesive or just hold the mask carefully in place with your fingers.
3. Stamp your “underneath” image. Part of this image will be on your mask and part on your finished product.
4. Remove the mask. Store with your stamp set to use again.

You can build layer after layer, just remember to start from the uppermost layer and work your way down.

Hint: When I am making masks or doing some other type of scrap work, I use a discontinued ink color or one I don’t like that well saving my current stuff and favs for other projects.

Ingredients: Stamps: Stampin’ Up!’s Fifth Avenue Floral, Kindred Spirits and On Your Birthday for greetings
Ink: Basic Black, Close to Cocoa, Soft Subtles and Rich Regals Watercolor crayons, Earth Elements Markers
Ribbon: SU’s So Saffron Grosgrain, Pink check from local stamp store
DSP: My Mind’s Eye

Lavendar and Black

This weekend I had a chance to pull together cards for the watercolor images I did at the hospital earlier in the week. I think this is my favorite.

When I originally stamped the images mostly on scraps of watercolor paper, I did a couple of them too close together on this one strip of paper. So I had to tear it diagonally to preserve both images. One of those created an interesting place to stamp the greeting in Versamark and then emboss in white embossing powder.

I love to put purples and black (or grays) together in my wardrobe and in cards. It isn't seasonal and has a bit of extra class.

Tomorrow we'll see the last of these cards and hopefully a link to a great video on masking. I just have to chase it down on YouTube.

Ingredients: Stamps: Stampin' Up! 5th Avenue Floral, Upsy Daisy for Greeting

Ink: SU Watercolor, Earth Elements Markers, Versamark

SU White embossing powder and Black gingham ribbon

Lavendar ribbon from fabric store

DSP from Colorbok

other papers are from unknown sources.

Watercolor while waiting

My upline Jean once mentioned how you could get some cardmaking done while waiting in the doctor's office or any of a number of places where you are a captive audience. Stamp a design ahead of time. Then take along coloring pencils and a blender pen.

My Dad had surgery earlier in the week (and is doing fine). Before going to the hospital, I stamped out a few flowers from the Fifth Avenue Floral stamp set on water color paper. I packed those, two tins of SU watercolor crayons, some scrap paper, and a couple of blender pens in a plastic paper storage envelope and tucked it all in my tote bag. Coloring in the flowers was a great way to make productive a little of the many hours we spent waiting. (BTW, the only good thing about being the last family still left in the waiting room at the end of the day is you get control of the TV.)

I finished the card above at home today. Next TIPsy Tuesday I'll share more of these designs and how to do the masking that allowed some flowers to be 'on top' of others.

Ingredients: Stamp Sets: Fifth Avenue Floral, Kind and Caring Thoughts for greeting.

Watercolor crayons: Stampin' Up! Soft Subtles and Rich Regals

Paper and ribbon are from unknown sources.

Very Free-form Quilting

My mother asked me earlier this week what personal sewing project I was working on. I had to be evasive because my current project is for her and my dad. I just finished the machine quilting on a quilt for their bedroom I plan to give them for their anniversary in a couple of weeks.

Last winter Mother borrowed a quilt I had made for us that was large enough for queen size bed. She has many family quilts made by my grandmothers. Unfortunately, old quilts come up short when it comes to larger beds. I told her I would make her one and hopefully she forgot. I want this one to be a surprise.

Here is a little sample of the free-form quilting. I consider this a utility quilt so I've taken the liberty of doing some experimenting. This leopard print fabric is the striping in the quilt and I am quilting randomly around the little spots. With free-form quilting, the sewer, not the machine, controls the speed and stitch length by moving the fabric freely under the presser foot. It takes practice - apparently lots of practice.

TIPsy Tuesday - Selecting Christmas Stamps

(This should probably say Tipsy Wednesday although I wrote it on Sunday. Crazy week!)

There are so many beautiful Christmas stamps in the 2009'-10 Stampin' Up! catalog that it can be hard to choose. One year I made my Christmas cards all the same and I got a little tired of doing the same design over and over. So the next year, I made many different designs with several different stamp sets. That ended up being a little much - at least for the time I had available.

The big question in selecing Christmas stamps is how many sets and what sets do you want? For me the question - no matter the season - is how much use am I going to get out of this set?

This year I ordered Season of Grace to do my Mother's Christmas cards. This set has three image stamps and two message stamps. At first I thought it might be limiting but I've realized from the SU catalogs, Splitcoaststampers gallery and my own experiementing that there are many different cards I can do with that set. I plan to use it next year for my cards and I've already used it for a Stamp-a-stack.

I ordered Home for Christmas for my cards and also used it at Stamp-a-Stack. (Click on the "Classes" catagory to see these two sets used.) But I needed more cards for Stamp-a-Stack and found several options:

• Serene Snowflakes shown in the last two posts of course makes really pretty holiday cards. And it doubles as just a beautiful intricate design for background or featured images on many cards and scrapbook pages. I'm sure I'll have this one out all year.



• Season of Friendship is designed for the 4 seasons. What better way to celebrate the holidays (if you live in a cold December climate) than the card above with white snowflakes and sponged and embossed white ink for snow. Cardinal's are the NC state bird and a frequent visitor to our winter bird feeder.



• Finally, I pulled out 'old faithful' that little truck set called Loads of Love. Here is the card we made.

So I have many options for Christmas this year and I bet you do too. When picking a stamp set, consider the cards you can make for yourself or to give to friends or family to give. A beautiful set of handmade Christmas cards makes a wonderful early Christmas present. Go through the sets you already have. Anything wintery you could use for the holidays? Or what about using the new ornament punch from the mini catalog with designer paper and some ribbon for a non-stamped card.

Also, you might consider doing a swap at some point with other stamperss so everyone gets a fresh holiday set to use.

And it can be a Snowflake, too!

Here is Serene Snowflakes again in a more traditonal use. We made this card at our Stamp-a-Stack yesterday. The snowflakes are embossed in white BEFORE stamping the smaller snowflakes in Versamark for a background. (I learned the hard way that it takes a little longer for Versamark to dry than I thought :-)

Ingredients: Stamps: Serene Snowflakes, All Holidays (greeting)

Paper: Going Gray, Basic Black

Ink: Versamark

Ribbon: White 1/4" grosgrain from Stampin Up!

More than just a Snowflake

Serene Snowflakes will probably show up on some of my Christmas cards. I'll post a holiday card using this set next week that we are making in our Stamp-a-Stack this Saturday. However, I bought this set because of the detail and versatility of the images. It would make beautiful background stamping for a scrapook page.

This card features the largest of the snowflakes stamped in Versamark and embossed with some Ranger powder I had. I could have probably stamped in Bordering Blue Craft and embossed in white for a similar affect. Before stamping, I sponged the chipboard with Very Vanilla craft and then Ranger's Weather Wood on the edges.

The center is my first build-a-brad. I love it! These are the pewter ones; the antique brass will be on an order very soon.

Ingredients not listed above: Stamp Set: Serene Snowflakes, Define Your Life and One of a Kind (center of the brad) by Stampin' Up! Also Flourishes by Paper Studio.

Cardstock: Dark Heritage Gray by Worldwin Papers

Not Quite Navy and Very Vanilla by Stampin' Up!

DSP is Bella Bleu by Stampin' Up!

Embossing Powder: Weathered Wood by Ranger

Ink: Not Quite Navy by Stampin' Up!

Chipboard: Stampin' Up!

Ribbon: Hobby Lobby